Councillor blasts Denny memorial letter

The war memorial

A scathing attack was launched on a councillor accused of “politicising” the memory of fallen soldiers.

The row broke out over a letter printed in last week’s Falkirk Herald.

Written by Independent councillor Brian McCabe, it questioned what would happen to Denny’s war memorial following the town centre redevelopment which is now underway.

Plaques listing the fallen from Denny and Dunipace are currently sited in front of the soon-to-be-demolished Church Walk blocks.

In his letter Mr McCabe wrote: “What specific action has Falkirk Council made concerning our war memorial? This cannot be viewed as something which is tagged on to the end of a very long and laborious regeneration process.”

However, last November The Falkirk Herald reported that the memorials would be moved to a temporary site to allow the 2013 act of remembrance to go ahead, before a new permanent town memorial was constructed.

At Tuesday’s meeting of the economic strategy and development committee, Councillor Dennis Goldie, convener, hit out at Mr McCabe’s comments.

Although he is a committee member, the Denny representative has refused to take his place on this or other committees, claiming that there is not proper proportional representation. However, on Tuesday he was sitting in the public gallery as the convener hit out.

Mr Goldie said a working group had been formed some time ago, made up of a wide range of community representatives, including the Royal British Legion Scotland and it had last met six days earlier.

He added that it had already consulted widely with all the groups involved.

Mr Goldie said: “That meeting was very productive, informed and non-political. You must have known that was the case.

“It is almost 100 years since the start of World War One and there will still be people who have relatives listed on these memorials. To suggest this council would undertake a major development of this kind and ignore the fallen is atrocious.